Long ago a kind sage found a frightened little mouse （老鼠） running from a cat. Feeling compassion, the sage used his power to turn the mouse into a strong cat. But then a dog chased the cat, so the sage turned it into a dog. When a tiger frightened the dog, the sage made it into a tiger. At last, to give the creature a peaceful life, he turned the tiger into a man.
很久以前，一位慈悲的修行者發現一隻嚇壞了的小老鼠（老鼠）正在逃避一隻貓。修行者心生慈悲，便用他的法力把老鼠變成了一隻強壯的貓。可是接著有一隻狗來追那隻貓，於是修行者又把牠變成一隻狗。當一隻老虎嚇到了那隻狗，修行者就把牠變成了老虎。最後，為了讓這個生命能過上平靜的日子，他把老虎變成了一個人。
The man lived well — but slowly an unkind thought grew in his mind: “I am better than the sage. Without him I would still be powerful. I do not need to be grateful.” The thought became pride, and the pride became cruelty. The man even wished harm upon the very sage who had saved him.
這個人過得很好——但慢慢地，一個不善的念頭在他心裡長了起來：「我比那位修行者還厲害。就算沒有他，我本來也很有本事。我不需要感恩。」這個念頭變成了傲慢，傲慢又變成了殘忍。這個人甚至想要傷害那位救了他的修行者。
Seeing the harm inside the man’s heart, the sage said gently, “You have forgotten kindness — so you may return to what your heart has become.” In a moment the man was a small mouse again. One bad thought, left to grow, had cost him everything. This is why we practice Ahimsa in the mind: we notice an unkind thought early, breathe, and wash it away before it grows. We choose to be the master of our thoughts.
修行者看見了這個人心裡的傷害，溫和地說：「你已經忘了善良——所以你可以回到你的心所變成的樣子。」一瞬間，這個人又變回了一隻小老鼠。一個壞念頭，任由它長大，就讓他失去了一切。這就是為什麼我們要在心裡練習 Ahimsa（不害）：我們早早地注意到一個不善的念頭，呼吸，然後在它長大之前把它沖走。我們選擇做自己念頭的主人。